Goodbye to the "Grey Towers of Durham..."

Once again, these transition days are interrupting my blog!

To catch up...

Our next excursion after Lindisfarne and Bamburgh was to a church and a couple of monasteries that date all the way back to the seventh century.

These churches (Escomb church, Hexham Abbey, and the monastery at Jarrow) were particularly notable because they had been built with stone. After the Roman Empire fell, stone was not used in construction. These churches, therefore were some of the first structures built in stone since the Roman Empire.

After visiting these historical sites, we went to Bede's World, a medieval history museum where we learned the ins and outs of monastic life of monks like the Venerable Bede. Behind the museum is a real replica of a medieval farm with snappy sheep, the most disgusting pigs, and very nosy horses. We petted and fed all the animals as if we were five-year-olds at a petting zoo before boarding the bus back to Durham.

That Thursday, we remained in Durham for a tour of the cathedral. We were all quite relieved that we didn't have to be subjected to yet another bus ride, that is, until Dr. Lomas marched us around all the nooks and crannies of Durham Cathedral until lunchtime. The beautiful lion-form knocker on the door of the cathedral is now an American replica (go U.S.A.!), but looks identical to the original; it even has the same bullet-hole in the top of its head as in the original. Apparently, anyone who was escaping persecution or justice simply had to rush into the cathedral and would be protected until he confessed his sin. When the sin was confessed, he had forty days to leave the country forever, in so doing saving his family from disgrace and disinheritance.

Dr. Lomas lecturing in front of Durham Cathedral.

After lunch, we went on another walking tour of the city to study the fortification of a medieval town. On the way to Preband Bridge we passed an intersection of wooded paths that evidently was inspiration for C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. After crossing Preband Bridge for a view of the vity, we ended the tour in the square in between the cathedral and castle of Durham.

Of course,  I had to take a picture with the lamppost where Narnia was supposedly inspired.

The following day we were back on the bus traveling to two castles to study medieval defense systems. We came first to Warwick Castle, property of the Percys, a royal family of Northumberland, followed by a trip to Edlingham Castle, of which very little remains.

Edlingham Castle ruins.

That night we all went out to a club called the Love Shack (hah.) where we all danced and indulged in various beverages. Thank goodness we had the following day off to sleep in and do whatever we wanted in Durham. Page Carpenter and I slept late and went to a cute restaurant called Vennel Cafe for quiche. Afterwards, we grabbed a couple of chai lattes to go from Caffe Nero and we browsed the outdoor market of Durham. We enjoyed a lovely farewell dinner with Dr. Lomas and his wife at a restaurant on the other side of town called Finbar's where I ordered shrimp and avocado salad, a salmon fishcake, and creme brulee. On Sunday, we boarded the bus for Oxford!

Take care, Durham..."it's been real."

The Wear River and Durham Cathedral towers from Prebands Bridge.